It’s over home office to give way to coworkingAt least that’s what it seems like after the pandemic. The country’s companies have just over three months to adjust their work models and implement measures related to NOM-037, but in addition to defining the new safety and health conditions for workers, the regulation is motivating More companies are looking for new alternatives for flexible spaces that boost their growth and help their employees have a correct balance between their personal and work lives.
“If there is something that the pandemic made clear to us, it is that there is a lot of diversity in the ways of working, which favors us now, not only to take advantage of all the capabilities of our employees, but also so that companies have cost savings,” he says. Liliana Orozco, Research Coordinator of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Mexico (ASEM).
Is the end of the home office approaching?
Currently, 84% of the companies that offer services work remotely, and only 47% of those that offer products have some form of remote work. Large and family companies were the ones that mainly returned to face-to-face work; while work teams with five or fewer members increased home office work by 9%, according to ASEM data.
In this way, the companies that work in person are mostly B2C (sale to the consumer), from sectors such as retail and wholesale consumption, gastronomy or manufacturing. In contrast, remote work increased slightly in sectors such as art, construction, tourism, and transportation.
Coworking and labor flexibility
The new provisions have generated greater concern from companies to address mental and physical health issues and better work environments, which also implies that they choose not only to have greater flexibility, but also to seek suitable spaces for their teams.
Eric Pérez, president of the Mexican Association of Coworkings and Flexible Spaces (AMXCO), points out that NOM-037 poses a very interesting challenge to the business ecosystem. “To comply with the standard, we are working with a certifying company to have a standard that helps us prepare. We know that large companies, due to their resources and infrastructure, are already aligning themselves with this regulation, but small ones are not, that is where we see an important area of opportunity”.
He reiterates that the coworking spaces were created mainly for entrepreneurs, since there they can find amenities such as meeting rooms, technology and the necessary services to make the entrepreneurial leap, that is, to become professional.
For Manuel del Valle, founder of Homework, a coworking focused on human development, the companies that most seek flexible workspaces are those that value the well-being and autonomy of their employees.
“Regardless of the sector or size, these organizations understand that working in environments where each person is important, as well as respecting their identity and personal culture, not only improves the quality of life of their employees, but also increases productivity and promotes a Greater balance between work and personal life. It has been shown that people who work in a FLOW state are 500% more productive”,
Manuel del Valle said.
Human connection and mobility
The also entrepreneur foresees that between 2023 and 2024, work spaces will experience a transformation towards ecosystems that encourage collaboration, human connection and mobility.
“A sense of community will be promoted through areas designed to facilitate informal interactions and networking. In addition, there will be more and more adoption of technologies such as virtual communication tools, artificial intelligence, proptech and collaborative platforms. The hub & spoke model will also be relevant, which will improve mobility efficiency and favor people’s times and quality of life through hybrid models”.